The Grey (Dramione)
by Alysha Ray Ackles
Summary: Its the summer between forth and fifth year that Draco Malfoy refused to take the Dark Mark. Draco said no. Though knowing his Father had his own ways of getting what he wanted, Draco ran that night. Hermione Granger finds herself questioning her judgment of people and their character, has she been wrong about Draco this whole time? Will she be able to see him in a whole new light?
1. The First Morning

**Full Description:**

**It's the summer in between fourth and fifth year that, after weeks of his Father pressuring him to take the Dark Mark, Draco Malfoy made his final decision. For the first time in his young life, he told Lucius no. Knowing full well his Father had his own ways of getting what he wanted, Draco ran that night. ****That same summer, Hermione Granger begins to question her judgment on people and their character. She begins to look at different people from their perspective but when she finds Draco Malfoy at the most unlikely place, will she be able to give him another chance?**

**Chapter 1 - The First Morning**

* * *

"What is that Death Eater doing here!" A gruff voice exclaimed in anger.

"Death Eater? He's just a boy. He doesn't even have a dark mark!" A second man's voice said trying to reason with the other.

"Well that _boy_ has done enough without one! Just ask my God son!" The first man bellowed.

Due to the loud argument being had nearby, Draco Malfoy woke up quickly. Last he remembered, some wankers were trying to pick a fight with him. He had never been one to hold his tongue and next thing he knew, he was bleeding on the cold pavement before everything went black.

He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and looked around the room for some clue as to where he was. The room was pretty dark despite the sun shining through a nearby window he noticed. Once Draco's eyes adjusted to the lighting he could make out some things around the room.

There wasn't much in the room, just the usual things but 10x more expensive. The color scheme seemed to consist mainly of dark green and black. "_Slytherin colors,"_ he couldn't help but think to himself. This room actually reminded Draco of his own room back at Malfoy Manor, at this realization he couldn't help but vaguely miss it.

Against his body's wishes Draco got out of the comfiest bed he's slept in since he left his home. He looked around the room and found a photo of two black haired, pale skinned boys with only subtle differences in appearance. He found the photo in a box in one of the dresser drawers.

He couldn't help but feel like he recognized these boys from someplace but he couldn't recall from where. As he picked up the photo to examine it closer, he heard foot steps start to come closer to his door. It was then that Draco realized the arguing and yelling had finally stopped.

Draco quickly placed the photo in the dresser drawer he found it in and hurried quietly to the bed. Maybe whoever it is will think he just woke up and wasn't looking through all this stuff?

"Ah Mr. Malfoy, I'm glad to see you're finally awake," he heard a very familiar voice say as he was 3/4 of the way to the bed. Draco looked to find none other than his very recent Professor, Remus Lupin.

"Professor Lupin?" Draco asked confused.

"Why don't you call me Remus, I'm not your Professor anymore if you remember," Remus Lupin suggested.

"Ok, then I suppose you can call me Draco," Draco said awkwardly. "Um Remus, where-where are we?" He asked the older man.

"Someplace safe, that's all I can say right now," Remus answered.

"But how did I get here? When? I was just on the streets," Draco questioned while his mind began to race.

"Here, why don't you take a nice shower, get changed into these and then come downstairs to have some breakfast before I answer any more questions," Remus suggested kindly.

"Where would that be?" The blond boy asked.

"Well the bathroom is out your door and down the hallway," he said gesturing to a door Draco hadn't noticed, "and since we are on the 4th floor you'll have to go down the stairs to the ground floor before going into the room with double doors."

"Ok, thank you Prof-I mean Remus," Draco said correcting his mistake.

"You are quite welcome, Draco. I'll leave you to it," Remus said giving him a smile before getting up and heading out the door.

Draco looked around the room for a moment so he could tell it from other rooms in the house before standing back up. He slowly walked out of the room he woke up in and turned down the hallway as Remus had said to. Only to be met with two different doors. He stood there debating which door the ex Professor had meant until deciding to try the one closest to him.

He opened it and looked in to see if it resembled a bathroom but was met with what appeared to be another bedroom. Draco began to close the door until he heard a sniffle and saw a man with long shaggy black hair sitting on the bed turned away from Draco.

"Go away, Remus," the man said tiredly.

Draco quickly shut the door when he saw the man move to look in his direction, he didn't want to be on the end of another wand so soon. He then opened the other door and was relieved to see that it was the bathroom. He felt his excitement grow at the idea of a nice warm shower.

A few minutes later Draco was walking down the staircases and went over everything that's happened to him within the last 24 hours. He still didn't know how he ended up in this place nor did he know what place his was. As awful as it sounds, he didn't think it could be Lupin's home.

While Draco didn't know much about werewolf Rights and politics, he knew it'd be hard for them to find a job. It'd especially be hard for one to get a job that paid enough to get a place like this. Perhaps it was that other man's house? The man Remus was arguing with. Was that the same man he caught crying?

Before he knew it, Draco had reached the very bottom of the staircase. Regaining his bearings, he tried to remember what Remus had instructed him. '_Go down the stairs to the ground floor before going into the room with double doors' _Draco remembered him saying.

He looked around for the double doors but he didn't even see any doors at all, let alone a double doors. Just as he realized he must've walked into the wrong floor, a creepy old house elf suddenly popped up right next to him. Even though he's lived with house elves his entire life, Draco still jumped in surprise.

"The Werewolf told Kreature to help Mr. Malfoy find the dining room," the house elf, who he assumed was named Kreature, said uncharacteristically happily.

"Ok, lead the way then," Draco suggested.

"Yes of course Mr. Malfoy, anything for a true Black, oh Mistress would be so pleased," Kreature kept saying as he began walking up the stairs.

"Wait, um Kreature is it? What do you mean by a true Black?" he asked.

"Would Master be angry with Kreature for telling him? But Kreature owes it to the great House of Black.." Kreature began to say seemingly to himself conflicted.

"House of Black? Are you saying this is where my mother grew up?" Draco asked curiously.

If Draco was being honest, this house elf was seriously starting to freak him out. The thing must've gone insane and if he is apart of the House of Black then he has probably been alone long enough to have.

"Oh no Mr. Malfoy, Narcissa Malfoy didn't grow up here. Narcissa Malfoy's cousins Sirius and Regulus Black grew up here, yes. But Mr. Malfoy is the last true Black to come back here in so long," Kreature informed him.

"This is where Sirius Black grew up?" Draco asked intrigued.

Draco had only ever seen Sirius in pictures he had seen that his mother had kept and he had only ever heard about him from papers or his family preaching blood purity. He had always been curious about his second cousin, him and his aunt Andromeda were the only ones who got out. He made it out if their insane family and even joined the light with the old crack pot Dumbledore.

It was too bad he had still turned out just as insane and murderous as the rest of the family.

"Oh yes, Mr. Malfoy," Kreature assured him.

Draco grew quiet and stayed that way until they reached the double doors Remus had spoken about. He walked through the door and saw a large table with breakfast foods of all kinds. With the anticipation on the house elf's face, Draco could only assume he had prepared it especially for him.

Remus was sitting down in one of the chairs with a plate of food looking at him expectantly and there was another plate across from him. The ex professor gestured for Draco to come sit in the spot across from him so that's what the blond did. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Kreature droop slightly at his lack of reaction.

"Hello again, Draco," Remus said kindly.

"Hi," he answered as he began to awkwardly fill his plate with as much food as it could hold.

Draco ate faster and sloppier than he probably ever has in his life but at the moment, he really didn't give a damn. He hadn't had a proper meal in a very long time and besides, he wasn't Ron Weasley sloppily eating.

"Draco, you'll need to slow down unless you want to throw all this back up and after what you've been through, I'm sure you wouldn't want to waste this food Kreature has kindly made," Remus said gently.

He nodded embarrassed at his behavior before significantly slowing down his pace. This food really was delicious and he didn't hesitate to let Kreature know. Even though the house elf may very well be insane, it made Draco feel good to be the cause of someone's happiness for once.

"Now, let's get down to business."


	2. Questions

**Chapter 2 - Questions**

* * *

On the outskirts of England, Hermione Granger was having frustrations of her own.

"Mum, why do they have to come over? You know how awful they are," Hermione asked her mother.

"Oh I remember, but you've been cooped up here and the library all summer. What you need is to be around people your age and besides, they're your cousins," Jean Granger answered and Hermione groaned.

"Don't worry Darling, it's only two days," Hermione's father attempted to soothe.

"I know Dad, but two days feel like ages when they're around," Hermione complained but starting to realize she had no choice but to accept it.

"Oh you'll be fine. Besides you haven't seen Jacob and Isabel since you were ten, a lot can happen in 5 years," Jean pointed out.

"Exactly, just look at yourself and how much you've changed! Why when you were ten, you didn't know you were a witch now did you? You weren't best friends with those two lads and you hadn't had any of those adventures either," Michael Granger piped in.

"I suppose you're right," Hermione said considering what her dad had just said.

"Just give them the benefit of the doubt and be yourself, Love. That's all we want," Jean said giving her daughter's arm a comforting squeeze.

_Ding dong._

"Oh that must be them!" Mrs. Granger said excited to see her sister, brother in-law, niece and nephew.

The Granger's all went to greet the new arrivals who would be staying with them for the night. Though Hermione lingered behind her parents, she was still determined to be polite. If nothing else, at least they would know she wasn't the same Hermione they had known five years ago.

"It's only two days Hermione, it's better than facing you-know-who," she said to herself in a whisper.

Her mom opened their front door to reveal a tall and slender black haired woman whom Hermione recognized as her Aunt Erica. Beside her was her cousins Jacob and Isabel Cruise she knew, but she could barely recognize them. Jacob has strawberry blond hair like his father and has really become quite handsome over the years. Isabel had long black hair and pale completion like her mother.

Hermione had to admit that they definitely looked different, as she had expected, but she wondered if they _acted_ different.

The two sisters hugged and the Granger's greeted and welcomed the Cruise family into their home. The adults chatted, gossiped and got each other up to date with everything in their lives. Well the Cruises had but the Granger's couldn't go and gloat about their daughter's witch status.

Hermione wasn't paying attention though, she had never been too interested in gossip especially when it was mostly lies. Instead she was thinking about everything that had happened this year in her life and what might happen this coming year.

She didn't know why, but she felt that something bigger than she could imagine was about to happen. She wasn't sure whether to be excited or frightened by that thought.

A sharp cough pulled her out of her thoughts.

"Why don't you kids go hang out in Hermione's room? It's time for the adults to talk," Aunt Erica said overly sweet.

They all nodded and Hermione led the way to her room unable to stop herself from believing her aunt had not changed a bit. Once the three of them got inside Hermione's room, they sat awkwardly for a moment. It seemed none of them knew what they should say.

"So how's your life been, Hermione?" Isabel asked trying to break the silence.

"It's had its ups and downs," she answered. "How's the two of yours been?" Hermione asked trying to be polite.

Instead of answering right away with a casual 'good' or 'ok' the twins looked at each other for a moment as if debating telling her something.

"So no one has told you?" Isabel asked a little over a whisper.

"Told me what?" Hermione asked confused and not liking where this is going.

It seemed like Isabel was having a hard time getting the words out of her mouth to explain. "Our dad got sent to prison a month ago," Jacob finally said for her.

"Prison? For what?" Hermione asked surprised.

Jacob looked to his sister as if for permission before he continued. "For abusing his children for the last 8 years," he explained after seeing his sister nod.

For the first time in quite awhile, Hermione Granger was speechless. How could she have missed that? All of the signs were there and yet she chose to believe the worst of them.

"Listen Hermione, we've gone to therapy and we now realized how we acted toward you and others was wrong. We just didn't understand how to process the anger and what was happening to us that we acted awful and, well, I'm not trying to excuse our behavior but-" Isabel began to babble worried by Hermione's sudden silence.

"But we're sorry for how we treated you and we were hoping you'd give us a second chance," Jacob finished and his sister closed her mouth and nodded in agreement.

Hermione looked at the two twins in astonishment at what they had just told her for about a minute before smiling at them.

"I forgive you," the brunette told them and she's never seen two people look so happy and relieved by three words. After that the three of them got along very smoothly, even joking and laughing together.

The rest of the day Hermione couldn't help but wonder, how many other people has she judged incorrectly?

* * *

_"Now let's get down to business."_

"What kind of business?" Draco asked cautiously.

"You'll answer my questions then I'll answer yours, sound good?" Remus said.

"Ok," Draco said uneasily.

"First question, why were you in Knockturn Ally?" The werewolf asked.

The Malfoy heir looked at Remus carefully thinking of what to tell him without giving up too much information. He was walking around Diagon Ally for a place to live or an opportunity to work when he saw one of his Father's close allies. Draco knew things would be bad if they saw him so he went down the closest path away but this plan backfired. Hence how he ended up here.

"I was walking around Diagon Ally and took a wrong turn while I was distracted," Draco simplified.

"Why were you walking around Diagon Ally?" Remus asked trying to get as much information as he could.

"I was looking for something I needed," Draco said plainly.

"What were you looking for?" Remus questioned.

"I wasn't looking for anything in particular, just hoping I'd come across something that would help me," Draco said without pause.

"What did you have in mind?" Remus asked.

"A few things," the blond said cockily.

"Draco, I need you to be clear and honest with me here-"

"I am being honest, Remus," he said mocking innocence.

"_Otherwise_ I won't be able to answer any of your questions, remember?" Remus suggested. At the teenager's hesitant look he decided to go on, "you can trust me, Draco, nothing you say will even leave this room if that's what you want."

"You promise? Nothing I say will leave this room without my say so," Draco asked before cursing himself internally for sounding like a child.

"Absolutely," Remus assured him and Draco sighed.

"You really want to know why I was there?" At Lupin's nod Draco began his story. "I was hiding from someone my Father knows and while I was trying to avoid them, I ended up going down the wrong path," he explained after a long pause.

"Were either of your parents with you before this?" Remus asked. "Why weren't they?" He questioned after seeing Draco shake his head no.

There was a short pause while the Malfoy heir was steeling himself to admit what he did. "I ran away," he admitted.

Just then, there was the sound of a loud door shutting that made both occupants of the room jump. Draco whipped around to see the very man he's never seen except from unflattering pictures.

"Sirius Black," Draco whispered beyond surprised.


	3. Meeting Snuffles

**Chapter 3 - Meeting Snuffles**

* * *

"That's my name, don't wear it out," Sirius Black said as he grabbed some bacon from the table.

"Sirius," Remus acknowledged.

Hearing both of their voices now, Draco was pretty sure it was the two of them that were arguing earlier. That would explain why Lupin seems surprised to see him but, considering how neither sounded angry at the moment, it was difficult to tell.

"Hullo Moony," the escapee said.

"Wait-um what? What's going on here? Why is he here?" Draco asked.

"Well I could ask the same thing," Sirius said giving Remus a pointed look

"I'm getting there, now Sirius if you would please leave so we can finish," Remus suggested.

"Oi I'm getting breakfast here, besides I would rather like to hear this," Sirius replied.

"Ok well I'm sure Draco would appreciate it if you left," Remus said trying to be respectful of Draco.

"He can stay," Draco said surprising them both.

"Wait I can?" Sirius asked surprised.

"Yeah, I mean as long as you don't kill me," Draco joked making the two occupants remember the fact that as far as he knows, Sirius Black isn't innocent.

"You don't have to worry about Sirius, I'll tell you why as long as I don't have to worry about you," Remus said with a pointed look.

Draco gave the older man a confused look, why would Remus Lupin, a werewolf, have to worry about 14 year old Draco Malfoy? Then he realized, they were in the middle of a war and his Family was on the other side of it. Was this what all of this was about? Figuring out which side he was on?

"So, why did you run away?" Remus asked.

At this question, Draco saw Sirius look up sharply at Remus with a confused expression. He nodded to Sirius before they both looked intently at the blond.

"I don't agree with my Father nor his views on blood purity," Draco said.

Draco looked down at the now empty plate in front of him in embarrassment, how childish did that sound? 'Draco Malfoy ran away from home because he didn't get what he wanted'?

"Oh? What are your views then?" Remus asked.

"I still believe purebloods are more entitled to have magic, but I've learned the hard way that we all bleed the same," Draco said.

"What was the last straw?" Sirius said suddenly.

"What?" Draco asked.

"The last straw, what made you believe you had to leave right then? What was so special about the night you left?" Sirius elaborated.

Draco paused for a moment. Looking at Sirius and then Remus, he debated how he should answer. Something about these two made him feel safe, which was something he hadn't felt in a long time. Draco had the sense that Sirius somehow understood him and what was going on, so he told them.

"I told Father I wasn't going to take the Dark Mark," Draco said feeling vulnerable.

"He didn't take it well, did he?" Sirius said as if understanding it a little too well.

Draco simply shook his head side to side, no one told Father no.

"Alright, that's all I need to know. Your wand and other possessions you had on you are in your room, would you mind giving me and Sirius a few minutes?" Remus asked kindly.

"Ok," Draco said with a nod before going back to the room he woke up in.

"So, what do we need a few minutes for?" Sirius asked after Draco left.

"Talking, Sirius, we need to talk," Remus said pointing out the obvious.

"What do we need to talk about?" Sirius said playing dumb.

"Well, what are your thoughts? Do you still not want 'that death eater' here?" Remus asked.

"He can stay," Sirius responded.

"Oh really?" Remus said with a knowing smile.

"Yeah, I mean as long as he doesn't kill me," he said just as Draco had making the other man chuckled.

"What changed your mind?" Remus asked.

"I believe him," Sirius admitted./

"And you don't mind him staying in that room?" Remus asked.

After a moment of pause, Sirius shook his head no. "That room has been empty for a very long time, I think it's time to change that," he answered.

* * *

Back at the Granger household, Hermione is having a much better time compared to the occupants of Grimmaulds Place. She was currently curled up in one of the seats in her living room with her nose in a book. While her cousins were entertaining themselves in some way or another.

"Hermione, dear, you got another letter," she heard her mother call from the kitchen.

The brunette put her bookmark in to mark the page she's on before jumping up and heading to the kitchen. She walked in to find her aunt looking rather confused and her mother holding a letter.

"Thanks mum," Hermione said kindly as she was handed the letter.

"Why I've never heard of an owl delivering letters, who's it from Hermione?" Her aunt asked.

"It's from one of my friends from school, his family has owls trained to send things like that back and forth," Hermione answered after seeing it was from Ron Weasley.

"How extraordinary! He must be one lovely boyfriend," Aunt Erica said.

"Oh no, Aunt Erica, he's not my boyfriend!" Hermione said a bit flustered by her assumption.

"Really? Who is your boyfriend then? You do have one don't you?" She asked.

"Actually, I recently had a break up of sorts but it wasn't much if a relationship to begin with," Hermione said referring to Viktor Krum.

"Oh? Do you fancy this fellow then?" Her aunt asked being nosey.

"What? That's ridiculous! I do not fancy Ron," Hermione denied with a blush on her cheeks.

In all honesty, Hermione did have some feelings for Ron but she wasn't about to tell anyone. She was sure this fantasy was just that, a fantasy. It took the bloke four years to recognise she was a girl for Merlin's sake!

"So his name is Ron, well I think that's a nice name for a gentleman," Erica commented.

"He's not much of a gentleman," Hermione admitted.

While she did happen to fancy Ron, it wasn't hard to admit how immature he was. It was one of the things that still bothered her but she was sure that he'll learn eventually...hopefully.

"Hermione," her mother said in a reprimanding voice.

"What? He isn't," she defended.

"Well that's quite rude of you to say don't you think?" Jean pointed out.

"I suppose.." she said not bothering to argue anymore knowing I'd get her no where.

"Why don't you go read that letter of yours and send one back now," her mother suggested.

"Alright," Hermione said not needing to be told twice.

She quickly went upstairs to her room before opening the letter.

Dear Hermione,

How has your summer been? Mine has been pretty well, other than Fred and George's bloody pranks! Did you know they're opening that shop in Diagon Ally after Hogwarts? Mum's furious. Oh, mum says we're going to stay at some place for the rest of the summer soon and she says you're coming with us. She says I can't write anymore details in case the letter gets into the wrong hands so I'll tell you when we see each other next.

Sincerely Ron

Hermione deciphered the messily written letter in front of her. She wondered how on earth the Weasley twins could afford to open their joke shop. Molly Weasley was a sweet woman but even Hermione knew that you didn't want to be on her bad side. She hoped she hasn't been too hard on them, it was their dream after all.

Where are they going to stay at and why? What was wrong with the Burrow? And especially why were they planning to take her? Would her parents even let her go? When would they leave?

While Hermione knew she couldn't have these questions answered by letter, she couldn't help but wish they could be. The brunette has always been curious, it's one of the reasons why she's considered the brightest witch of her age. But she also knew she could have some questions answered and that would soothe her curiosity for now.

So, she began to write.


	4. The Dragon

**A/N: Hey guys, so if you´re reading this then that means I finally figured out how to update chapters on this thing! Yay! If anyone else wants me to explain to help them out feel free to PM me, it may take awhile but I will reply to you! Anyways back to the story.**

**Chapter 4 - The Dragon**

* * *

"Ronald Weasley, get off your bum and pack! We're leaving tomorrow night, you know!" Molly Weasley shrieked at her youngest son.

"But mum," her youngest son, Ronald Weasley, whined.

"No buts! You haven't even started packing your things, now go!" Molly demanded.

"Yes mum.." Ron said as he got up and went to his room.

Once in the room, Ron pulled out a trunk and began to lazily toss things in the trunk. He didn't bother folding them but when he had everything in, he struggled to close it. As he was readjusting the items he packed, he heard a tapping at his bedroom window.

Ron looked over to it to see Pig, the owl he got to replace Scabbers -who he now knows is Petter Pettigrew- , with a letter attached. The redheaded boy went and opened the window and let the owl in. Just as he was about to grab the letter, there was a loud pop before Fred and George appeared.

The twins apparating so unexpectedly had scared Pigwidgon as much as it had scared his owner because the owl began to fly crazily around the room.

"Bloody hell Ron!" George Weasley exclaimed as he ducked.

"What's wrong with your owl?" Fred Weasley complained as he also ducked.

"Oi! What's wrong with you two? He may be thick but you don't have to bloody well scare him to death!" Ron defended.

Pig began to calm down enough shortly after that the letter could be retrieved. Ron began to stroke the owl to help calm it down. Unfortunately for Ron, his mischievous brothers had noticed the letter attached to his leg.

"Looks like Ickle Ronnikins has a letter," George teased before snatching the letter. He looked at the letter with George peering over his shoulder.

"Oooh it's from none other than the lovely Hermione Granger," Fred said in a false dreamy voice.

Both of them laughed when Ron's face started to grow red. Although it was hard to tell whether it was embarrassment or anger.

"Honestly, when will you tell the poor girl that you fancy her?" Fred questioned.

"I don't like her!" Ron said.

"Oh really?" Fred said not believing a word of what he just said.

"Yeah!" Ron said, his face growing redder.

"Then why are you blushing?" George said with a growing grin.

"I-I um," Ron stuttered.

"That's what we thought," George said.

"Be careful Ron, if you wait much longer someone else will beat you to it and you'll miss your chance," Fred said seriously.

Ron stayed silent after that, surprised by his sudden serious tone.

"It's your life," George said with a shrug at Ron's lack of response.

"Later little bro," the twin Weasley brothers said in unison before apparating someplace else in the large house.

Ron stood there, staring at the spot where his two most mischievous brothers had just disaparated from. What if they were right? Was he really running out of time to be with Hermione? But who would want to be with her other than him?

Ron pondered these things. Hermione wasn't exactly the prettiest girl at Hogwarts at least since he's seen her last. She was bossy and didn't care too much about what others thought of her. Ron decided that he would be fine, at least until he could find the right moment.

After all, she was only popular because she was vest friends with him and Harry, why would anyone else want to be with her?

* * *

Meanwhile back at Grimmaulds Place, Draco Malfoy was searching for something to do so that he wasn't so bloody bored.

So far Draco's stay here after the whole interrogation thing has mainly consisted of eating, sleeping, avoiding people, being avoided, and especially being bored out of his mind. He's been wanting to wander around the house or go someplace, even simply outside, but he was too nervous.

What with a bunch of Death Eaters no doubt searching for him and he's staying in the same house as Sirius Black, Draco felt much safer in the room he's unofficially claimed.

But, that meant he had nothing to do.

So, Draco was entertaining himself by doing his best to count all of the stars on the ceiling of the room. He had discovered yesterday that the ceiling had all, or at least most, of the stars and constellations painted on it.

Draco had learned all about the stars and constellations starting when he was young. After all, he was named after one. His mother, Narcissa, had told him that it was a family tradition to name any children you have after the stars or constellations.

A knock on the door pulled him abruptly out of his thoughts. Draco looked to the door quickly, he wasn't sure whether to be worried or relieved that someone was at his door.

Even after he saw who it was.

The door creaked open and in came Sirius Black, with the same I-own-this-place air about him but there was something new about his demeanor. Draco could figure out what it was but it was almost as if he was somehow..softer? than before.

"Hey there Malfoy," Sirius said with amusement.

"Don't call me that," Draco replied before looking back up at the ceiling. It was a painful reminder of his family.

Sirius chuckled and put his hands up in fake surrender. "What would you rather me call you then?" Sirius asked before his eyes looked up to the same place Draco's had and he smiled, "Dragon?"

Draco simply ignored his comment and traced the constellations. "Me and my brother, we used to stare at the stars for hours every night, we enjoyed it so much that we were able to chart the stars on our ceilings," Sirius said.

"Was this your room?" Draco asked after a few seconds.

"No, this was my brother's," Sirius responded as he walked closer to the bed admiring the room that held so many memories.

"Regulus Black," Draco remembered.

"Yes," Sirius said surprised that Draco knew who his brother was, though he figured he probably shouldn't as Draco was technically family too.

"What was he like?" Draco asked, "If you don't mind my asking."

"Why do you want to know?" Sirius asked.

"He's my second cousin, just as you are, and I was hoping that maybe there are a few members of my family that aren't or weren't insane," Draco explained.

Sirius could definitely understand that. After all he was raised with some of the worst in their family.

"Well, I can't tell you much actually," Sirius admitted.

"Why not?" Draco asked looking back at him.

"Because, young Dragon, I'm a Black who was sorted into Gryffindor while he was sorted into Slytherin like the rest of the family. After getting sorted at Hogwarts, we became sort of enemies," Sirius admitted.

As awful as it sounded, Draco could understand that. He could only imagine how terrible things would be with his parent alone that Sirius was put into Gryffindor, let alone with his brother. If Draco had ended up in Gryffindor, well, let's just say he'd be running away a lot sooner.

"Was he a good person?" Draco asked.

"I wish I knew," Sirius sighed.

"Are you a good person?" Draco asked.

Sirius paused upon hearing that question. He thought about it for a minute or two before answering the teenager.

"I like to think I am, I certainly try to be," Sirius replied and Draco nodded satisfied with that answer.

"Why did you come in here? I highly doubt you don't have a reason," he asked making Sirius chuckle.

"You're right, I do have a reason," Sirius started.

"And?" Draco said expectantly.

"And I couldn't help but notice that you've been staying in here as much as possible, so I wanted to assure you that you don't have to be afraid to come out of this room," Sirius explained.

"I'm not afraid," Draco said defensively.

"Yeah and my uncle is a Hippogriff," Sirius said sarcastically.

"Whatever," Draco replied.

"Point is, you're still left in the dark about a lot of things, which will be explained shortly by the way, I never murdered anyone and I'm not insane for example. So I don't care much if you wander the place," Sirius said.

"Ok. Is that it?" Draco asked.

"No," Sirius said, "I also want you to know that me and Remus talked, we decided that you can stay here for now on."

"Wait, what?" Draco said shocked. "R-really?" he said hoping he didn't hear the man incorrectly.

"Yup," Sirius said walking back towards the door, "oh and just a word of advice, you shouldn't go in the Master Bedroom."

He closed the door before Draco could ask why.

Huh, maybe Sirius Black isn't as bad as people say.


	5. Black Family Tree

**Chapter 5 - Black Family Tree**

* * *

_I can stay, they don't want to get rid of me,_ Draco thought happily.

He has been thinking about what Sirius had told him for awhile, maybe he should make more of an attempt to be comfortable here. After all, it didn't look like he had any place else to go at the moment. So, after about two hours, Draco came out of the room and just walked.

Draco walked and walked, memorizing every inch he saw as he went. He didn't know where he was walking to, all he knew was that he was finally out of that room. In a way, it felt freeing. Not having to feel as if he wasn't allowed to go out of that confining space.

Occasionally he would glance into different rooms when he felt the need to. Draco found that there were a lot of empty rooms or ones filled with random things. It made him wonder what they planned to do with this place, if Sirius and Remus were the only ones living here why is it so large?

He began to pass one of the seemingly millions of doors when he heard a really odd noise, he couldn't describe what it was though. He paused and backed up so he was right in front of the door the noise was coming from. Draco opened the door unceremoniously, unable to help it his growing curiosity.

The suddenness of his intrusion scared the creature inside the room. Flapping it's wings and getting on two of its four legs threateningly.

"AHH!" Draco yelped in surprise to find the Hippogriff he had almost had killed, Buckbeak.

He stumbled back and fell on his arse just outside of the room. Making sure to close the door as soon as possible, he felt like he was going to have a heart attack.

Draco swore that he heard a hearty laugh coming from someplace inside the house.

After analyzing what had just happened, it was then that Draco realized that that must have been the Master Bedroom.

Damn you, Sirius!

Draco pulled himself back up and brushed off all the dust that had just gathered on his ragged clothes.

He hated looking at the clothes he had to wear due to his circumstances, it was just another reminder of what he's gone through. The life he's lived before that, the masks he's put on so he could be what his father wanted him to be. The lies, the harsh words, the hexing, and so much more. The weeks of living with barely anything and truly being nothing.

A reminder of all his failures.

Accepting failure is always very difficult for Slytherin's but especially so for Draco Malfoy. All of his life, his main goal is to make his father proud or even just not be a disappointment to the man. Sometimes he couldn't believe it took him so long it took him to realize that the bar Lucius Malfoy held his standards at was too high for anyone to achieve.

It wasn't until he had almost tripped on a loose floorboard that he realized he began wandering again. Draco didn't even know what floor he was on anymore but as he looked around, he knew he wasn't on the same one he was before. He shrugged it off, with everything that's going on he has been dozing off quite a bit. So Draco wasn't too worried.

As he began walking again, he found that his eyes were drawn to another door slightly ahead of him. As Draco walked closer to it, he reached for the doorknob carefully. He didn't want to find another hippogriff from his past.

Draco opened it slowly and gently, his suspense begins building as the door opens wider and wider.

He peered into the room after opening it wide enough and...there was nothing.

Not just no person nor animal but there wasn't even a bed, chairs or anything at all. Draco opened the door all of the way to find a dark empty room. He looked all around the space until he saw something he recognized instantly.

The Black family tree.

At least he assumed it was for the Black's considering that according to Sirius, he was in his and his brother's childhood home. He recognized it so quickly because he used to look at the Malfoy family tree a lot. Both due to Lucius's persistence and Draco's own accord.

He would stare at the faces of the family on his father's side and desperately wish to be like them, if only for the approval of the family that's still living.

Now he was desperately wishing to be nothing like them.

But now he was looking at the family on his mother's side.

Even from the pictures he could tell most of them were insane. Draco walked up to the portrait and traced his fingers over his mother's photo. Oh how he missed her, she was the only reason he didn't want to leave Malfoy Manor.

Other than the fear of jumping into something entirely different and the fear of being rejected by the Order if he ever found them, of course.

Draco saw all the other family members he's heard of in stories his mother would tell him. Bellatrix Lestrange, Druella Black, and Walburga Black were the first few he noticed. They were probably the most crazy out of the entire family, and Draco didn't know the half of it.

He saw a few burn marks on the tree signifying family members being disowned. That's where he found Sirius's photo, he traced his fingers over it. While Draco hasn't known him long, he did feel like he could become quite close to his second cousin.

He followed the long and eventually found Andromeda Black, his not-so-insane aunt, who had a burn mark as well. Draco learned of her existence one night a few years ago when he found his mother crying.

Narcissa had told him about how her older sister, she was nicknamed Andy, had been there for Narcissa when Bellatrix would terrorize her. How the two sisters would play together and became very close, how Narcissa was beyond heartbroken when Andromeda left and how she missed her so. Most of all though, she was relieved that her older sister got to escape.

After her stories and she had stopped sobbing into Draco's arms, she had made Draco promise her that he would follow his heart.

That's how he got here.

Upon his mind getting bombarded with the memory, he felt tears being to sting his eyes. Draco tried to blink them away but instead they rushed to their escape. Great, Draco thought, now you're balling like a child!

"Malfoy's don't cry," his father's voice echoed over and over in his mind.

Draco used to want to be just like his father, but now that's what he was afraid of. He knew he'd never be just like him but what if he was too far gone? What if after everything he's done, he lost his chance of being redeemed?

The Order of the Phoenix wouldn't accept him and then what would he do? Surely Sirius and Remus wouldn't want someone like him to stay after that. He couldn't go back to Malfoy Manor either.

He hadn't realized his crying had increased until he heard footsteps and the sound of an old door opening.

"Draco?" A deep voice said in a concerned tone.

He didn't need to look to recognize that it was Sirius Black who had found him.

"I-I don't wa-want to be like the-them," Draco said pointing at the portrait. He was trying to explain, even though it was hard to understand.

Somehow though, it seemed that Sirius did understand what he said because, he did something Draco never would have guessed.

Sirius silently walked over and hugged him.

At this, Draco began to sob. Hard.

Sirius just kept his arms around the boy as he shattered in front of him, he rubbed his back trying to soothe him but he also understood that Draco needed to cry. After Sirius was disowned, it wasn't until about halfway through the year that he was able to cry again because of how much he held his emotions in until he exploded. So yeah, Sirius had a pretty good idea of what Draco was going through.

"What if I can't be good anymore? What if I waited too long?" Draco said through tears.

"Listen Dragon, the world isn't split into good people and Death Eaters. We've all got both light and dark inside us. What matters is the part we choose to act on. That's who we really are," Sirius said.

This seemed to calm Draco, even just a little bit as his tears began to quiet.

"You can talk to me about it, you know. We are family so I'd like to think I'd understand," Sirius said.

Draco thought about it for a moment. He's never really talked to anyone about the horrors he's delt with and maybe it was because he was so weak from crying, that Sirius found him so vulnerable, maybe he just wanted someone to talk to or even that he was starting to trust Sirius. Draco didn't know, but in that moment, he decided it was time he let it all out and talked.

Draco told Sirius everything and he listened.

The rest of the afternoon was spent with deep conversation, lots more tears, and family bonding.


	6. Answers

**A/N: sorry it took me so long to make this chapter especially with how short it is but I will make it up to you by hopefully publishing another one soon. **

**Chapter 6 - Answers**

* * *

After Draco Malfoy and Sirius Black's heart to heart, Sirius had made sure not to leave Draco alone for too long. He knew better than most that if left for too long, someone's own thoughts could be dangerous. So the pair talked, Sirius made lunch and Remus Lupin eventually joined them. Draco was starting to feel like maybe this is what having a real family is like.

Sirius was a lot like Draco, he noticed but there were some very defining differences. Obviously the whole one being in Slytherin and the other in Gryffindor was the main one. Draco had also noticed that surprisingly, him and Remus had some things in common as well. Even with the differences though, Draco found that he really enjoyed their company.

Before any of them knew it, most of the day had passed and they were finishing up eating their dinner.

"So Dragon, you must have thought up a lot of questions since you got here and I think," Sirius said before looking to Remus for a moment, "we're ready to answer them."

"Ok..um..where am I exactly?" Draco asked.

"You're in my childhood home, and the newest headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix. But I cannot tell you anymore than that," Sirius said.

"The Order of the Phoenix?" Draco said surprised. They looked at him curiously so he explained, "I've uh been wanting to find the Order actually.."

"Why?" Sirius asked.

"I want to start over, maybe get a second chance of sorts and I figured that they would be my best chance. Besides if you're going to win what's coming, you're going to need as much help as you can get," Draco replied.

They both nodded the Sirius began to speak, "we spoke to Dumbledore the night you arrived and we were planning on bringing you up at the next Order meeting to the others," Sirius said.

"When is it?" Draco asked.

"In a few days, it won't be too long," Sirius said.

"Alright," Draco nodded. "What did Dumbledore say?" he asked.

"He approved, but the rest is not for us to say," Remus answered before Sirius could.

"Ok, then how'd I get here?" Draco said looking around.

"Well," Remus started, "that's a bit of a long story."

"I might just have enough time," Draco said sarcastically.

"Yes well," Remus began, "I was walking through Diagon Alley when I caught a familiar scent. So I went in that direction only to find two large men beating none other than the Draco Malfoy to a bloody pulp. By the time I took care of them, you had passed out. I knew I couldn't leave you there so I brought you to the only place I could, here," he finished.

"You..saved me?" Draco asked confused as to why an member of the Order of the Phoenix would help a, as far as he knew at the time, future Death Eater.

Remus gave him a look and was about to say something before he was beaten to it. "Yup! Saved you like the hero he is," Sirius said putting a playful arm around Remus's shoulder.

"Ok, well why aren't there more people staying here?" Draco asked.

"At the moment me and Sirius are the only ones we know of that needs someplace to stay, besides you of course," Remus said removing Sirius's arm from his shoulders.

"Are more people going to stay here soon?" Draco asked.

"Actually, the Weasley's are planning on moving in here for awhile as it's currently not safe for them where they live now," Remus said.

Remus was unsure if he can trust Draco enough to mention Hermione and Harry's arrival to Grimmaulds Place as well. Especially Harry's, he was the key to this war and with their past rivalry..

But, Sirius decided for him.

"Oh, don't you remember Moony? Hermione's coming with them and my Godson soon after," Sirius said with a fond look on his face.

"Who's your Godson?" Draco asked curiously.

"None other than Harry Potter himself," Sirius said proudly.

Draco subtly looked down at the table, ashamed at how he had treated the boy-who-lived. Not to mention Granger and all of the Weasley's. He genuinely did want to have a second chance with them all, but that was a lot easier said than done.

"Listen kid, before I met you, I thought you were a spoiled brat who believed he's better than everyone else just because of who he was born to," Sirius said unintentionally making Draco feel worse. "But, now that I've spent time to get to know you, I got a feeling that your heart is in the right place," he finished.

"That's not enough though, is it?" Draco said bitterly, "it's not enough that I want to change, to want to be good, or have a heart in the right place. I have to prove it, I have to prove myself. After what I've done to the Golden Trio, I doubt anyone will give me the chance to."

The two men seemed surprised by his outburst, Draco wasn't sure why though, he was raised by a death eater after all.

Sirius, though, was the one to recover first though.

"If you truly want another chance, then you'll find proving yourself to be easier than you think," Sirius said wisely.

Draco didn't answer.

"You've already made a lot of progress proving yourself to me and Sirius, so you'll have our help as well," Remus added and this made Draco crack a small smile. It made him think about his thoughts earlier of today being like he finally had a family.

"Yeah, I guess I do now," Draco said quietly.

"Great! Now that that's settled, do you have anymore questions?" Sirius asked.

"Actually I do. How long can I stay here?" Draco asked.

"Forever," Sirius said and Draco's eyes went wide.

"I can?"

"He can?"

Draco and Remus said simultaneously.

"As long as a situation doesn't arise where he'd need to or if he simply wishes to move," Sirius said with a shrug.

While Sirius seemed casual about it and Remus smiled at his friend being so generous to the boy he just met, Draco was confused. The blond could wrap his head around how Sirius Black didn't mind Draco staying in his home possibly forever. Which reminded him of something..

"Any other questions?" Sirius asked starting to feel uncomfortable with the attention.

"Yeah uh you never explained to me how you're innocent," Draco pointed out.

"Yes, that would be a statement, not a question," Sirius said with raised eyebrows making Draco roll his eyes.

"Fine. How are you innocent?" Draco asked.

"Ah, there we go. Well, you see.."

And Sirius began to explain the long story of how he was wrongly convicted and how he was, in fact, innocent. Draco asked more questions to make sense of this while Remus added in little things to help.

After the explanation, they all decided to go to bed but Draco played in the bed reeling. He was outraged, how could they not give Sirius a trial? He was sentenced for a crime he didn't even commit!

Draco vowed to himself that night, one day he would make sure Sirius Black walked a free man.


	7. Hermione and the Weasley

**Chapter 7 - Hermione and The Weasley's**

*****

Hermione Granger was having lunch with her parents, aunt, and cousins when the doorbell rang.

"Oh, I wonder who it could be," Aunt Erica said.

Her aunt and cousins were supposed to leave after simply two days and yet, they've made no move to leave. They might be staying longer than planning, while Hermione didn't mind her cousins as much, her aunt still got on her nerves.

"I'll get it," Hermione said jumping up from her seat.

She saw her aunt give Hermione's mum an odd look but the young girl paid no mind to it as she went to the door.

Ever since Ron Weasley sent her the letter saying she was going with them someplace sometime, she's been on edge. Don't get her wrong, she loved the Weasley's. It was just that they weren't very good at blending in with muggles, and with her muggle aunt and cousins who aren't aware of her being a witch.

Well, let's say that has potential for disaster.

She opened the door to find exactly what she had been expecting. Six redheaded Weasley's at her doorstep chatting amongst themselves loudly.

"Heya 'Mione!" Ron said noticing her first and offering her a smile. This, of course, made her stomach erupt in butterflies but she returned the smile.

Before Hermione could say anything in return however, "oh Hermione, dear," Molly Weasley greeted before trapping the girl in a hug.

"Hello Mrs. Weasley," Hermione said hugging the woman back. "Hello Ron and, well, everyone else," she said with a laugh.

"What are we-"

"-chopped liver?" the Weasley twins said. She's never been very good at telling which one was which, as they liked to pretend to be the other.

She broke the hug with Mrs. Weasley before hugging both of the twin brothers, then Ginny, and giving a handshake to Arthur Weasley.

Now it was Ron's turn.

Hermione stood there awkwardly before Ron, seemingly unaware of her discomfort, gave her a hug. She could feel the blood rush to her cheeks as she hugged him back. The hug was short than the ones with the other Weasley's, but to Hermione, it felt like the longest.

"Well come on in, I'll go tell my parents you're here," Hermione said before doing just that.

"Oh this is a surprise, what are they doing here on such short notice?" Her mother said.

"I think they want to ask if I can stay with them for a little while-" Hermione began.

"But you have guests and we want to spend time with you," Aunt Erica budded in not bothering to pretend she wasn't ease dropping.

"Mum, Dad, can you come talk to them with me? I don't know for sure if that is the case," Hermione said.

"That's fine dear," Jean Granger said before addressing Hermione's father, "come along, Michael." The three Granger's then made their way into the living room where the Weasley's have been waiting.

"Oh hello Jean, Michael, it's wonderful to see you again," Mrs. Weasley greeted.

"Always a pleasure, Molly," Mrs. Granger said.

"It is, but I have a feeling this isn't for nothing," Michael Granger said.

"And you're right, Michael. As you should know, things where we come from has taken a turn for the Worst. So me and my family have decided to move to a safer location until further notice, we were hoping that with Hermione's involvement that we could take her with us. For the safety of her and the both of you," Mr. Weasley explained.

"Ah I see, and how long do you think this would be?" Mr. Granger said.

"Well right now we're only asking for the remainder of the summer, if longer is necessary then we will worry about it then," Mr. Weasley said.

"When would she have to leave?" Mrs. Granger asked.

"As soon as possible, we were even hoping right now," Mr Weasley said.

Hermione's parents looked at each other and seemingly had a conversation with their expressions. They never did like letting their only daughter leave, especially for such a long time. But they knew from what Hermione told them that this was very serious. With their minds set, they looked to their daughter.

She smiled at them, "I'll go pack," she said before heading up the stairs.

While Hermione was in her room shrinking and packing more than she needed, Aunt Erica decided to meet the newcomers. She came in and was instantly skeptical of the red haired family, judging them even before even knowing their names.

By the time Hermione came down, her aunt had engaged Arthur in conversation about muggle technology. While her aunt was obviously not a fan of the man, Arthur was too excited to talk about these inventions to notice. Hermione also noticed her cousins, Isabel and Jacob were in the room as well, standing awkwardly towards the corner of the room.

"Fascinating! And what did you say this invention is called?" Mr. Weasley asked intrigued.

"A microwave?" Aunt Erica said confused as to why he wouldn't know what a microwave was.

"A microwave," Mr. Weasley badly mispronounced in fascination.

"Yes.." Aunt Erica said suspiciously.

"Alright well, I'm ready," Hermione announced before her aunt could ask any questions.

"Ready for what?" Her aunt asked as Mr and Mrs. Granger hugged their daughter.

"To go with the Weasley's," Hermione answered happily.

"Oh I don't think that's such a good-" she began to say disapprovingly.

"As her parents, I do think that it would be our decision. Not yours Erica," Mrs. Granger said shortly, shutting her sister up real fast.

"So, are we ready to go?" Hermione asked.

She saw a collection of nods before they began piling out of the door. Hermione went over and gave her aunt a hug and a quick goodbye only to receive an annoyed one returned. She then went and gave both of her cousins a hug.

"Thank you for coming, I'm glad you told me about your father, I actually had a lot of fun with you guys and I hope to see you both soon," she told them.

"Thank you for being so understanding, it means a lot," Jacob told her.

"I hope we'll see you soon, Hermione," Isabel said with a smile which she returned.

Hermione then gave her parents a big hug before heading for the door. As she was going, she noticed Mrs and Mr. Weasley stay back to have a word with her parents. She decided to allow them their privacy and follow the Weasley children outside.

They all packed inside a vehicle considerably smaller than what would be needed for how many people were coming. She hesitantly got inside the vehicle after Ginny only to find it was about the size of a limo on the inside. She may be a witch and she may have read more books about magic than just about anyone, but seeing magic before your eyes will always amaze her.

Molly and Arthur came out of her home as she was putting her trunks in the trunk, Molly got into the vehicle while Arthur helped her get them situated. They both then got in and then they were off.

Where, however, was still a mystery to Hermione.

*

Draco Malfoy knew that the Weasley's were coming over today but he had no idea what to do when they got here. As far as they know, he's still on the path of being a Death Eater. Should he try to talk to them? Should he avoid them and slowly change their minds about him?

He's been pacing his room for the last 30 minutes and he hasn't come up with any course of action. They'll be here really soon and yet he had no plan.

He decided to get out if this confining room. Maybe then he could come up with an actual idea and if he's lucky, an answer.

So Draco wandered the dark halls yet again, the same halls that held so many horrid memories, so much pain. They held good memories too, but he wouldn't bed on many. These are the halls Sirius grew up in, the halls his dead Death Eater cousin Regulus grew up in too.

Draco shook his head, thinking like this wouldn't solve anything.

Perhaps he simply waits to make an appearance? He didn't want to start anything bad so soon after their arrival. He could just wait a week or so for them to get settled in..yeah. That doesn't sound so bad, just get some things to entertain himself and only go silently down for food.

Just then, he head a door open and Walburga Black's portrait begun screaming from the entrance. Draco walked closer to the noise, already knowing what it meant.

They're here.

*

They arrived faster than Hermione Granger thought they would, but she supposed she should be used to it by now.

Once they got to their destination, they were given a piece of paper labeled "Number 12 Grimmaulds Place". They all read and memorized it before it burst into flames and a dark, old house came into view.

After they began piling into the house, a portrait of a ghastly looking woman began to start screaming out of no where. Sirius Black and Remus Lupin came and covered the portrait, and soon the screaming stopped.

They welcomes the new comers but Hermione had the odd feeling there was someone watching her. She looked around, her eyes catching movement near the staircases. Hermione was only able to get a glimpse of light blond hair before it disappeared out of sight.

*

**A/N: Hey guys, I have some questions for ya. Do you guys like fanfictions better when Draco already has a crush on Hermione or when he first develops one during the story? Which one do you think would be best for this fanfiction?**


	8. A Granger's Curiosity

**_A Granger's Curiosity_**

*

Hermione Granger has always been a curious person, it was one of the reasons she's considered the brightest witch of her age. Once something has sparked her curiosity, however, she won't rest until she knows all about it. Because of this trait, Hermione couldn't stop thinking about the glimpse of blond hair she saw the day before.

While she was enjoying spending time with Sirius, Remus, and the Weasley's, her mind wouldn't leave it alone.

Someone else was in the house.

Hermione thought about it during dinner, in her and Ginny's shared room, and all the way to now while she was eating breakfast. So she ate and tried to listen to whatever Ginny was trying to tell her but Hermione couldn't quit focus.

Then, Ginny stopped talking.

Hermione looked at her to find Ginny was staring at something behind her. It was then that she noticed everyone else had gone silent as well. When she looked, she was frozen in shock.

There, casually filling up a plate of food, was Draco Malfoy.

Draco had slept in this morning which unintentionally resulted in his dramatic entrance. Normally, this would be his specialty but today, he was trying to go unnoticed. That, obviously, backfired.

He was dressed in some pajamas that Remus had given him the first night he stayed here, his hair was sticking in every which way, and everyone was staring at him.

Draco tried to ignore them and get some food, but he could feel his hands shaking and the floor seemed to sway under him. Despite this, everything else stayed casual as if this wasn't a big deal. He was just getting some breakfast after all.

As he finished getting his food, he couldn't help glancing up at the others in the room. Sirius and Remus sat in tense silence, probably preparing for a blow up any second. All of the Weasley's eyes were wide and full of shock.

And then, grey eyes met brown.

Draco recognised these eyes as Hermione Granger's, but the usual angry glare he received, she looked very different to him. She looked prettier and more innocent he thought.

It was only for a second, but it felt so much longer to Draco and Hermione.

Just in that moment, they both saw what the other was trying to hide. Just in that moment, they saw each other in a different light even only a little.

Hermione saw how vulnerable and scared Draco was and in turn Draco saw how very curious and sympathetic Hermione felt.

Then Draco quietly walked out and back to his room, there he ate his breakfast while thinking about what he saw in those brown eyes. Hermione wasn't angry about him being there like the Weasley's were, she was simply curious while they were coming up with their own conclusions. It was written all over the redheaded clan's faces, he wasn't being bias.

Maybe there was more to Hermione Granger than he ever cared to admit.

Back in the kitchen, it was anything but quiet. The infamous Weasley temper was flaming from them all as they demanded answers.

"What's bloody Malfoy doing here?"

Was the overall question but there were other names being thrown about the room.

room.

"Death Eater!"

"Bloody Slytherin!"

"Pureblood bastard!"

Those were only a few, and Hermione was getting annoyed. With all of this yelling, you couldn't hear anything and no one would have the answers they want.

"Alright, that's enough!" Hermione said only loud enough for them to hear. "I'm sure there is a reasonable explanation but yelling won't get your answers," she explained before looking to the only two who had the answers.

"Thank you, Hermione," Sirius said. He sighed, "I see you've all met my cousin," he added with humor.

"Cousin? You're related to Malfoy?" Ron asked with a look of disgust.

"Yes, Ron. Draco's mother, Narcissa, was a Black and my cousin which makes Draco my second cousin," Sirius explained.

"Why is he here?" Fred asked.

"Well, that would be Remus' story to tell," Sirius said looking then to the ex professor.

"Ok, um thanks Sirius," Remus joked. "Well I was in Diagon Alley when I caught a familiar scent, I had no idea who it belonged to yet as I've never been particularly close to Draco. But I followed it until I found about three grown wizards beating him to the point where Draco had passed out by the time I got there. I took him to the only place I could. Here. And he's been here since," he explained.

"He probably deserved it," Ron said.

"How would you know?" Sirius piped in defensively.

"Because he's Malfoy, he's made our lives hell," Ron replied as if it was that simple.

"People change, Ron. I do believe Draco has for the better," Remus said calmly before Sirius could say something he may regret. "Now, it has already been decided that he's staying. I expect all of you to treat him kindly, the boy has been through a lot recently," he added to the group.

"Why are you so determined to let him stay? Just because he got a few bruises doesn't give him the right to-" Ron began.

"Because we trust him. He ran away from his home at Malfoy Manor to seek help from the Order and we believe him," Remus explained.

"But he's a Slytherin-" Fred began.

"-They lie like no tomorrow!" George finished.

"Not all Slytherin's are evil, Mr. Weasley. In fact, one of Sirius's cousins, Andromeda Tonks, is quite the honest woman and she was a Slytherin in her Hogwarts days," Remus said.

"Hell, she's still a Slytherin through and through," Sirius added.

It was silent for a moment before Hermione asked her own question.

"Why did he run away from Malfoy Manor?" She asked calmly.

"That, isn't for us to tell you," Remus said.

Hermione understood, she wouldn't want all of her secrets being told behind her back especially if they were painful enough to leave everything she knew behind. She couldn't imagine what might've happened that would've pushed him to leave.

While Hermione knew that Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy weren't particularly pleasant people, they were still his parents so it had to be something drastic.

By the time Hermione refocused on her surroundings instead of her own thoughts, the usual chatter had returned and it was as if nothing changed.

So she returned to her previously forgotten breakfast and eventually joined in on a conversation. Pretty soon she found herself talking about the Ministry with Arthur Weasley and Remus Lupin.

All the while keeping a certain blond wizard in her mind.

*

**A/N: Sorry it's taking me so long and sorry this is such a short/slow chapter but I promise it'll get better. To keep things interesting..**

**What Hogwarts house are you all in? I'm a Slytherin myself**


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